Walmart worker dies following shoplifting incident

Wilson police are investigating the death of a Walmart greeter after she was injured during a shoplifting incident.

Officers were called to a shoplifting in progress Wednesday at the Walmart on Forest Hills Road. They took 23-year-old Joshua Max Lambert into custody at the scene.

It was at that time officers saw an injured employee, who they say sustained her injuries before police arrived on the scene.

Rochelle Pender, 71, was taken to Wilson Medical Center and then airlifted to Pitt Memorial Hospital where she died Friday.

An employee, who witnessed the incident, told authorities Lambert and Pender collided while Walmart employees were involved in a foot pursuit with Lambert. That's when Pender fell and sustained her injuries.

Lambert is facing two counts of simple assault and was being held under a $5,000 bond. He remains in the Wilson County Jail.

Police did not say if additional charges are pending but the investigation is ongoing.